This distinction was presented to him during the American College of Surgeons Annual Clinical Congress held in Chicago this past September 30th through October 4th.

The James IV Association of Surgeons was founded in 1957 by Ian Aird of London, John Bruce of Edinburgh and J. William Hinton of New York. The association is named after the fourth Stuart King of Scotland because of his interest in scientific affairs. One of its important functions is to sponsor visiting fellowship opportunities for outstanding surgeons between member countries.

Previous winners of this fellowship include transplant surgeon David Gerber, MD, in 2008, who used the James IV award for travels to London, Edinburgh, Paris, Barcelona, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide and Auckland.